Whitehall, Oct. 9, 1756.
My Lords, [of the Board of Trade]
Pursuant to your Lordship's order dated the 18th of August last, we have taken into our consideration the humble Petition of Henry McCulloh Esqre praying for the reasons therein contained that His Majesty will be graciously pleased to order the Sum, which was formerly deducted from the Arrears of Salary due to him as comptroller of the Quit Rents in South and North Carolina to be now set off against the Quit rents of such lands as the Petitioner and his Associates are entituled to in the Province of North Carolina and that in consideration of his great sufferings and the Obstructions which have been given him by the War in America, he may be at liberty to carry on the Settlement of the said Lands until the 25th of March 1760. at which time the Petitioner will surrender to his Majesty all the lands which have been granted to him or his Associates within his Majesty's Division in the Province of North Carolina that are not then settled in the Proportion of one white Person for every two hundred acres contained in the said grants. Whereupon we beg leave to report to your Lordships. That the case of the Petitioner as set forth in his Petition appears to us from the many difficulties and hardships with which it has been attended to be worthy of compassion the Lords of his Majesty's Treasury seem to have considered it in the same light and to have granted him Five hundred pounds out of the Duty of 4½ per cent from Motives of commiseration and upon Principles of Equity. And as Mr McCulloh has in explantation of the first part of the Prayer of his Petition acquainted us that his meaning, though not so expressed is to deduct the said Five hundred pounds from three thousand eighty four pounds, being the total Sum abated in March 1752 on the Arrears of salary then due to him and to pray that the remainder
being two thousand five hundred Eighty four pounds may be now set off against the Quit rents of such Lands as he and his associates are entituled to in the Province of North Carolina, we see no reason why His Majesty may not in his Royal Bounty and goodness be graciously pleased to grant the Petitioner this his humble request.With regard to the second Point contained in the Prayer of the said Petition, we beg leave to acquaint your Lordships that the Term of ten years at the end of which the Petitioner is by the conditions of his grants to surrender to his Majesty all such parts of his Lands as shall not then be settled in the proportion of one white Person for every two hundred acres, will expire in March next And his Majesty's Governor of North Carolina is by the 84th Article of his Instructions directed to examine into the State of the said Lands at the expiration of the said Term and to seize and take possession of all such parts of them as shall not at that time be so settled. But as the many difficulties and hardships, which the Petitioner appears to have undergone, the State of Hostility in which America has so long been and the War in which it now is engaged must have greatly obstructed the Petitioner in the Prosecution of his settlements the Indulgence of three years longer appears to us to be a reasonable request and we would humbly propose that his Majesty's Governor of North Carolina may accordingly be directed to defer the Execution of the said Article of his Instructions till after the 25th of March 1760
Additional Notes for Electronic Version: This letter appears to be addressed to the Privy Council rather than the Board of Trade. The signatories were members of the Board of Trade.